
Sumayah Nakazibwe and Stella Ariokot feared they would be next as fires took hold of neighbouring houses
For four hours, two Ugandan care workers, Sumayah Nakazibwe and Stella Ariokot, were barricaded into their house near Crumlin Road, north Belfast, as smoke leaked in, and flames licked the walls of neighbouring properties.
“It all started like people were just marching, young boys between the age of nine and 20,” Nakazibwe said. “They were all putting on black, and masked.”
Continue reading...The lowest ever viewing figures, an identity crisis for the show and a confusing Billie Piper-based cliffhanger – whoever takes on the BBC fantasy drama has quite the job on their hands …
The announcement that the BBC has abandoned the planned Doctor Who Christmas special, and is ending its partnership with showrunner Russell T Davies and Bad Wolf production company, will not have come as much of a surprise to many fans. It has been rumoured for some time. Aside from the gossip, the fact that no filming appeared to have taken place for a programme that traditionally requires a lengthy post-production process had already suggested something was up.
The BBC has said the show remains an important part of its portfolio, stating it wants to ensure that “when the Tardis lands once more, it does so in all its glory”. While it isn’t inconceivable that Bad Wolf might bid to make the show under a new regime, Davies appears to have hung up his Tardis keys for good, posting on Instagram: “Now I’m as excited as anyone to see what comes next!”
Continue reading...In the UK – and across the west - incendiary language and white supremacist policies are entering the political mainstream
What qualifies as too rightwing these days? It’s a question I’ve considered often in recent years. But it takes on even greater urgency when contemplating the rise of Restore Britain. Founded by multimillionaire businessman and former Reform MP Rupert Lowe, the party enjoys the active support of far-right tech bro Elon Musk, the world’s richest man. If Nigel Farage strikes you as a wet liberal, then Restore Britain may be the party you’ve been waiting for.
Its mission, it says, is to “reverse mass migration”. That means deporting not just undocumented migrants but “legally resident foreign nationals” who live in social housing, claim benefits or supposedly “fail to integrate” – a strikingly elastic category. Lowe himself declares that “millions and millions” need to leave or be made to leave. Officials and politicians “who knowingly placed dangerous third world savages in our communities” will be imprisoned.
Owen Jones is a Guardian columnist
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Continue reading...From marvelling at teenage wonderkids to tracking the world’s largest coffee pot, our team of writers outline their expectations for the jamboree in North America
Use our Bracketology to click your way through the group stage and the knockouts to crown a champion
Spain and Portugal in the final, with Spain winning. I’ve played our Bracketology game 20 times and gotten 20 different paths but Spain always end up winning. Alexander Abnos
Continue reading...‘The tabloids will always try to sensationalise. But it was 6.30pm. If Kate really had been falling out the door blind drunk, it’s not a picture I’d particularly want to take’
I have photographed Kate Moss a fair few times. The first time was probably around 1990, during the Johnny Depp days. I also shot her with Jefferson Hack and many of her other boyfriends, but it was only on official occasions, Topshop launches and things like that.
There was a period when whatever she did, 200 photographers would turn up. For her 33rd birthday, I was asked to cover her party at the Dorchester hotel. Then I got a call saying she was at the Donmar Warehouse theatre watching a matinee of a play with Rhys Ifans in it. “Could I go over there and get a picture of her leaving before arriving at the birthday party?” When I got there, there must have been 200-250 people outside. They had the front door surrounded – photographers, camera crews, fans, you name it. It was absolutely packed. I quickly realised that getting a decent picture was going to be very difficult.
Continue reading...People across the Black diaspora are increasingly turning to weight-loss drugs. How might this reshape our health, wellbeing and body image?
These days, I barely make it through the week without seeing news about what weight-loss medications, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, can now supposedly achieve. Beyond the health benefits of shedding fat, “GLP-1” medications are also touted to treat addiction, and, as reported recently, even lowering the risk of breast cancer. But the extreme weight loss fuelled by these drugs is also reshaping beauty standards.
In this week’s edition, I’m digging into whether Black beauty ideals across the diaspora are under threat from the spread of weight-loss medication. It’s a delicate conversation that I’ve been eager to have for a while.
Continue reading...Relatives of Stephen Ogilvie say unrest is unwelcome and that many migrants make valuable contribution to UK
The family of the victim of the Belfast knife attack have appealed for calm after riots erupted across the city, forcing families from their homes in fear for their lives.
Amid apprehension in Northern Ireland about continued violence after Monday’s disturbances, Stephen Ogilvie’s family said in a statement that they wanted to “make it absolutely clear that overnight unrest is not welcome”.
Continue reading...President speaks to reporters, claiming the US was close to a deal but Iran is ‘playing us for suckers’
If the US genuinely wants a deal it will have to engage with Iranian demands on sanctions relief, says Danny Citrinowicz, the former head of the Iran branch of Israeli military intelligence.
Today’s exchange of strikes shows how easily both Iran and the US can slide towards another round of escalation, says Citrinowicz, who is now a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council.
If Washington is unwilling to accept that reality, it should recognize the likely alternative: continued confrontations with Iran that could eventually spiral beyond anyone’s control and lead to military conflict under less favorable conditions.
Even a limited military campaign designed to weaken Iran would not fundamentally alter Tehran’s negotiating position. It has not happened in the past, and there is little reason to believe it would happen now. Iran emerges from the latest exchange of blows convinced that it can absorb pressure and respond to attacks.”
Legal and moral responsibility of all countries in the region (especially those located along the southern shores of the Persian Gulf) to prevent the US military and Israel from using their territory or facilities to plan, organise, execute, or support hostile actions against Iran.
Continue reading...Mohammad Tajik and Alnour Ali, who steered boats on Channel crossings, are first to be sentenced under new law
Two men have been jailed under the new offence of endangering others during a journey at sea.
The two men who were steering small boats are the first to be sentenced under the law, which came into force in January as part of government efforts to counter small-boat crossings.
Continue reading...Footage appears to contradict Israeli military’s account of killing of seven-month-old Sam Abu Haikal in West Bank
Footage has emerged that appears to contradict the Israeli military’s account of the shooting that killed seven-month-old Sam Abu Haikal in his mother’s arms, showing the family’s car slowing near a military post before soldiers opened fire.
On Friday, the killing of the infant by Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank caused outrage, after soldiers opened fire on the family’s vehicle despite it having complied with an order to stop. Sam was killed and his mother, Daniyah Abu Haikal, and father, Fahed Abu Haikal, were both injured.
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